Ep212: Time to play!

One of the things that can quickly diminish the excitement of any park going experience is wait times. Wait times can be especially horrible when in the heat or with fussy children and many of us resort to playing games like ‘Heads Up!’ while waiting. Disney has decided to make an attempt at alleviating the pressures of standing in lines with the launch of the Play Disney Parks App. The app is available for iOS and Android and launched the same day that Toy Story Land opened at Walt Disney World. The app was a joint project between Imagineering and the digital guest experience division of the Walt Disney Company. Together they created an experience that allows guests to interact with each other with mini games, music, trivia and badges and digital rewards for completing tasks within the parks. Josh Gorin, executive R&D Imagineer at The Walt Disney Company, told Variety:

“When you think about the history of Imagineering storytelling over 60 years, it’s about creating truly immersive places where guests can step into fantastic worlds, meet characters they love and connect with the people they’re with, and Play Disney Parks is a natural extension of that original vision by leveraging the latest and greatest in technology to bring those worlds to life and give our guests an active role in the story.”

The Disney Company are no strangers to leveraging technology and have already been adding interactive elements to the park going experience. For instance, in Epcot, you can play Agent P’s World Showcase Adventure. Guests could register to check out a flip phone (or F.O.N.E. – Field Operative Notification Equipment) to help Agent P defeat Dr. Doffenshmirtz. Considering that almost 90% of guests have smart phones now, the game was transitioned to one of the Disney Park apps. Using your smart phone as a unique tracker has endless possibilities.

The app itself is fairly limited but there is promise of growth. At launch a small number of attractions have digital experiences but we really feel that this is just the tip of the iceberg. The launch of this product can also be a test run for weighing out server loads and/or tracking guest interactivity to see if similar experiences will work in Galaxy’s Edge.

The amusement park going experience has changed over the last 50 years but more so in the last 5-10 years. The last decade has seen leaps and bounds in technology. Smart phones have reached a point where they are (in many cases) more powerful than some people’s home PCs and leveraging this technology plus pushing it’s boundaries is going to enhance the park experience. We feel that this will really help enhance the park-going experience for annual pass holders more than the average park goer.

What about you? Do you feel that this app will enhance your park going experience? Join the conversation and leave a comment down below!

We are returning to the CHOC Walk in the Walk at Disneyland! The walk takes place the morning of August 26, 2018. Last year we had a lot of fun hanging out together and more importantly raising money to help many children.

Last year we raised over $5,000 to help the children of CHOC and this year we would love to exceed that! We set our initial goal to $5,000 and we know we can get there with your support! Here is the link to join our team or to make a donation: